Architecture in the Balkans from Diocletian to Süleyman the Magnificent (c. 300-ca. 1550)

In this major work, Slobodan Curcic traces the development of architecture in the Balkans from late antiquity to the height of the Ottoman Empire. Covering not just ecclesiastical buildings but architectural enterprises ranging from urban conglomerations, simple houses, and palaces, to fortifications, cisterns, aqueducts, and bridgesCurcic assesses the origins and impact of Byzantine architecture in the region. This bookthe first of its kind on the subject matterconsiders the continuity of architectural tradition in a region marked by profound political, cultural, and religious confrontations, as well as periods of creative interactions over a historical span of nearly thirteen centuries. Revealing in terms of the largely unknown material it presents, the book explores processes whose significance extends beyond the Balkan Peninsula itself. Illustrated with several hundred photographs and drawings, most specifically made for this purpose, the book is a landmark achievement. This book is the first of its kind to discuss the history of the Balkan Peninsula from late antiquity to the height of the Ottoman era by focusing on architecture as its principal gauge. In doing so, it transcends various established conventions in scholarship to present the architectural heritage in the Balkans in a manner that is accessible and comprehensible. Slobodan Curcic challenges notions derived from ̀modern' national historiographies that view architectural heritage within the confines of modern political boundaries as ǹational' heritage with privileged ǹational' status and relevance, that frame historical ̀periods' by relying on western art-historical conventions and that perceive historical events and developments as major determinants of cultural history Throughout the book architecture is viewed as a function of distinctive needs (social, political, religious), distinctive means (economic, technical know-how, material availability) and distinctive goals (aesthetic, propagandistic, protective). As a result, the book covers the full range of architectural enterprises, from simple residential buildings, to public monumental structures; from fortifications, to utilitarian buildings (cisterns, bridges, etc). The urban context of architecture is emphasized, while its role in rural settings is used as a gauge of other distinctive phenomena Diocletian And The Tetrarchy (ca. 280-312) -- Constantine I And His Successors (312-ca. 400) -- Christianization (fifth Century) -- Restoration Of The Empire (sixth Century) -- Transformation (seventh And Eighth Centuries) -- Renewal (ninth And Tenth Centuries) -- Between East And West (ca. 1000-ca.1250) -- Period Of Turmoil (ca. 1250-ca. 1450) -- The New Order (ca. 1450-ca. 1550). Slobodan Ćurčić. Includes Bibliographical References (p. 884-895) And Index. Period of tetrarchy Constantine I and his successors Christianization (fifth century) Restoration of the empire (sixth century) Transformation (seventh and eighth centuries) Renewal (ninth and tenth centuries) Between East and West (ca. 1000-ca. 1250) Period of turmoil (c. 1250-c. 1450) The new order (c. 1450-c. 1550). Illustrated with over nine hundred photographs and drawings, most of them specially commissioned, the book presents a generally unknown body of material in a distinctive and unprecedented manner. --Book Jacket